Align Your Skills with Your Career: Invest in a Franchise

Like many people, you may be uneasy about self-assessments. After all, it can be uncomfortable to place yourself under a psychological microscope and ask yourself probing questions.

But if you’re considering making a franchise investment, some introspection is more than wise; it’s necessary as you place your happiness, peace of mind, sense of fulfillment and financial security at stake.

So strike a reasonable compromise. Run through a short but insightful list of seven skills recommended by two high-profile sources that regularly engage with entrepreneurs from all realms of the business world: Entrepreneur and Inc. magazines. Then ask a few trusted friends or colleagues – people who know you well – to run through the same list on your behalf. Together, you’re bound to make some interesting discoveries – and learn before you make a franchise investment whether your skills are aligned with the life of a franchisee:       

• The skill of self-discipline: How you spend your time, how you spend your money, how you manage deadlines, when you say “yes” and when you say “no” all factor into self-discipline. This skill will serve you extremely well if you choose to make a franchise investment because it is the one that the other six skills are built upon.
• The skill of self-reliance: You will have a staff of employees and a team of experts (a lawyer, accountant and marketing professional, at the least) to assist your efforts. But there will be plenty of days when you will have to depend on yourself – drawing only on your time, your energy and your talents – to make a franchise investment work.
• The skill of communication: Many people rightly assume that entrepreneurs are “good talkers.” But they also must be even better listeners because plenty of people bend their ear: customers, employees, vendors, community members and all the people who share a stake in the franchise investment at the executive franchisor level. Add strong written communication skills to the mix.
• The skill of compromise: Entrepreneurs are typically goal-oriented, persistent planning types, but they also must be adept at compromising with their various publics. This skill can be vital when it comes to developing a productive working relationship with the franchisor, who may 1) render decisions the franchisee doesn’t agree with or 2) doesn’t appreciate dissension in the ranks.
• The twin skills of flexibility and adaptability: It’s a rare person who embraces change – and proudly admits it. But entrepreneurs will be doomed if they demonstrate rigidity in how they approach obstacles and setbacks. They will come in all shapes and sizes and be of varying duration. You want to do more than persevere with a franchise investment; you want to champion it, too.
• The skill of seeking information: It turns out that your business professors were on to something big when they lectured about how lifelong learning (not a quest for fortune and fame) separates the movers from the mopes in life. People who undertake a franchise investment often say that the experience is so educational that it’s like going to college all over again – if they’re willing to learn.
• The skill of seeing trends (the short-term picture) and the bigger picture: If people have told you, even in jest, that: you’re a “visionary”; that they admire your ability to “connect the dots”; or that you make spot-on predictions, you possess an enviable skill that will serve you well as you undertake a franchise investment. (As for those people who say things in jest: they’re envious, too.)

You may find that your skills are not just aligned with investing in a franchise; they also may be aligned with those we look for at Supporting Strategies. As a bookkeeping services and operational support franchise, we can set the stage for a diverse client base that will keep you invigorated – just as the most spirited entrepreneurs expect to be.

If you’re ready to learn more about what it takes to invest in a Supporting Strategies franchise, visit our website.